A prospective study of bereavement in elderly men and women will be undertaken. Subjects (322 bereaved and 322 controls) will be assessed at four times following the death of a spouse (six weeks, six months, 12 months and 18 months) by means of a structured interview and self-report scales. Instruments were designed specifically to reveal information in five areas (religion, coping strength, support network, cumulative losses and health). Attempts will be made to identify factors that may predict the course of bereavement (i.e., abnormal versus normal grieving). Selected variables will be analyzed in a multivariate framework using EFAP, COFAMM and LISREL procedures to test aspects of a model hypothesizing that positive adjustment to traumatic loss is a function of the interrelation of three constructs (coping strength, support network and cumulative losses).